-->*OFFICIAL: Dell XPS M1730 Owner's Lounge*<--

So we're thinking something along the lines of

http://img.alibaba.com/photo/50518725/High_Quality_MF_Car_Battery.jpg

Maybe we could support quad Sli 8800M!

 

OK, this simply has to be caused by a specific descrepancy between our configurations.

I have just had it crash as well (white screen on start-up, then had to reboot), worked ok the second time though.

Seems to be the same bug as the 3dmark one, hence I would expect it can be avoided, once again, by changing from the "Vista" theme to "Windows Classic".

But why on earth are a handful of folks experiencing these issues and having to resort to compromises, while others like yourself do not appear to be? We've all tried uninstalling and re-installing numerous drivers countless times (via the acknowledged method) yet to no avail, we can't all be making the same mistake! .

There has to be something pivotal that Dell has either included with or omitted from our respective installations that is making the difference. Either that or it is a hardware related incompatibility that is manifest only when a certain component is used in the build. I highly doubt it's a defect, otherwise A) there wouldn't be such a simple remedy and B) the errors we're observing would not be identical.

Time to "spot the difference" I think!

Firstly, is there anybody here encountering SLI-related lockups (with 3dmark 06, Solitaire, the NV control panel etc) who ALSO has the LG panel?

to ivealwaysgotmail: My screen seems virtually noiseless, the odd click or two when I open and close, but no obvious or irritating creaks. Did the tech turn up by the way?

 

Okay here are todays results.

The tech showed up, great tech, he again marvelled at the laptop, I showed him the ps3 that i just got back from sony for being "too dusty" to be replaced, and he laughed, saying he regularly works on computers that have massloads of dust in the USB ports and its just to be expected with any type of computer.

He opened the box to find:
1 Samsung Wuxga Panel, ;-( and no replacement hinges or paneling of any type.
And a "refurbished" motherboard
I laughed at the fact the thing has been out for so little time and already has refurbished motherboards.
He kept the screen sealed and he told me that the creaking was just the plastic on the lid and the hinges would have done nothing anyway.

He replaces the motherboard, Marveling at the dual hard drive bay, and the backlit keyboard along the way. And to my surprise some of the issues i was having were actually partially solved.

The LightFX bug when the Audio Blips to the LightFX visualizer is completely gone when plugged in, But


I'd Like anyone with an m1730 to try this, Go to WM player, Startup a song on the lightfx visualizer (right click the visualizer screen and select lightfx 3) and listen, then unplug your m1730 and hear the crazy amount of crackling and static that appears.

For the most part it seems like the flickering of the LCD is close to gone when unplugging and plugging in.

Still no resolution to the massive drops in speed when not plugged in.

@ Franklins

I have the solitare lockup, i had the Nvidia control panel dissapear for a while and i havent tried 3dmark06, I have the LG panel.


Its not so much the Hinges of the lid, If you closed the lid and pressed on the wings edges, or if you grabbed the side of the screen and squeezed it together. Mine Seriously Creaks like an old house. Its kind of crazy.

@ 72hundred

So your telling me that having 2 of the current batteries in the system would give it a very significant battery performance jump? I doubt that. Car battery not required.

If your making the thing 10lbs already, why not put 2 batteries next to each other under the system?

 

I remember that someone in this forum ask to an insider on Dell about the upcoming 8800m in the 1730 and the answer was that they were having some troubles to make it work and it will take no less thatn 5 to 6 months... i hope thats not true otherwise it will be a long wait. Anyway you re saying that it will be no more than 2 months as a maximum, is that your guess or u re basing on somenthing

 

The problem with that is there is probably no room for a second battery and we could be up for some big explosions if the Dell batteries are faulty again lol, I doubt that though. But honestly, I dont think there is enough room for another battery, they would need to make the notebook even bigger.

 

My two months limit is a guess! I've no facts to back it up.

To be honest the M1730 seems so buggy I mightn't invest in it.
Just not worth it for €3k!
But if dell can get two 512Mb 8800M GTX's into it some time early next year then I'd be tempted, albeit with the acceptance that its going to buggy as hell.

Personally I think the M1730 will benefit (like every other PC) from Vista SP1, so I think that I might wait till then to buy (I think that's april of next year) and then the 8800M's should be in and maybe at a slightly reduced price.

@ Everyone else: Noticed that the latest firmware makes reference to a 9500M? Wonder will 8800M be top for long

 

9500m probably will be a replacement for the low end 8400m

 

Hi Everyone!

I also have a Dell XPS M1730... but in fact I am not really happy with the system performance... I run XP on the system. does anyone know if this could cause the performance problems?

Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 4 example runs partly under 25 FPS on 1024 x 768 and medium settings.

Or Command & Conquer Tiberium Wars runs even worse than on my former Dell M170 with a 7800GTX...

I just think about sending it back and waiting for the new system with the 8800GXT SLI. But... I dont know if it will bring so much performance increase as I hope... I mean, with the hardware, which is included in the current M1730 modern games should run smooth, dont they?

They dont need to run on 1920 x 1200... but well... I think u know what I want to say...

And please excuse if this is the wrong place for my question!

 

The 8800 will be significantly faster, a single 8800 is faster than 2 8700. Also nVidia's SLI drivers for 8700 are not very good.

 

Well, I run Command and Conquer at Very playable framerates at 1920 1200. So im guessing its either a driver, OS problem, or config problem

I havent tried COD4 but i will soon, I just cant justify spending 200$ on games because UT3, The orange box, crysis, and COD4 all came out around the same time.

Whats your configuration? SLi Enabled? SLi Came disabled on my machine (WHY?!)


My Tech Replaced the Mobo recently on my m1730 and he was marvelling at the video card (s). They are both on one card, a very large card with dedicated fans completely seperated from the processor cooling.

The whole dvi-svideo component lifts out with the card, I would think it would be VERY EASY to upgrade the cards in this system. Also i know it is only using 90w out of a possible 140w of graphics dedicated power, So the system is actually only running at a max of 190W, not much more than the m1710.

I would be really surprised if Dell didnt offer the upgrade to all Current m1730 owners around the time Alienware actually launches their m17x. If they dont they will get alot of people calling in saying they are tired of waiting for better drivers, and they dont care if they have owned the system for 2 months they want to return it. Dell usually understands this an lets you return a defective system well out of the usual 30 days, Just to let you know.

 

Yeah I think that's what the article kinda was pointing towards.

It'd be funny though if we were all waiting for the 8800M... and when it comes out we all get it... and then the 9800M comes out 6 months later!

Of course there's something like a 0.01% chance this will happen, but it wud be funny

 

What is the best drivers for dual 8700 in SLI in an m1730? So it has to be Dell compatible. Im gettin OK results from 169.09.... much better than dell drivers. But FRAPS is lagging. I like to use fraps... so pls help. I want a Driver that can do FRAPS and run games. 169.09 is very nice on games like CRYSIS. But suckish on FRAPS. or do I have to get a newer fraps when it comes out?

 

I have no problems running COD4 at 1920x1200 at full detail (no FSAA). I get a solid 30fps so I don't know why you can't (see my specs in my sig).

Are you running FSAA or do you have a physics card?

 

I doubt that the 9800m would even come out during the initial release of the 9000 series, it will probably be a wait like the 8800m and by then, Dell will probably be releasing a new XPS notebook and the 9800m will probably be more powerful than two 8800ms.

 

I am totally sick of this system. I just own it at least 2 days and it is not half as good as I supposed it to be! I will return it... that is the first thing I will do next week on monday... just send it back to hell... ähm... I mean dell.

I dont know what the problem is, maybe my OS... but I just dont care. If the 8800series is so much faster, I will have to get one of this! I think for the 4333€ it should be possible to get one... not such a wrong proportioned system with a bad driver support.

So thanks for the hints and replies but I will search for an alternative... maybe a Dell system WITH 8800series, an alienware or a Rock system... WITH 8800series... I am just not sure. Is the alienware support better? does anybody know? or is there a really tough and good notebook available right now? or should I just go on, enjoy the show, lean back and wait a while... until... the end of days, which will reveale a new era of gaming notebooks?

I should have known better...

 

does anyone here want to see the insides of the 1730? if so, tonight I will post some pictures of it and the parts... hopefully. If I don't get all the way I will post some pics of whatever I did get to.

 

Hey - that should be interesting!

If you get a chance check out the GPU connection interface and the HD config?
(I've heard that the rocking in the laptop when put on a flat surface is due to the hard drives.)


72oo

 

I think the rocking is because one of the feet is on the hard drive cover and one is on the battery, they must move a little bit. I've seen the tech open the darn thing up twice and I am experienced with stuff like that so I should be able to get inside it pretty easily, just hope I don't lose any more screws (the tech lost one) and the tech also broke the bit where the screw goes into for the cover of the LCD... Anyway, when they announce the new GPU I will ask for a replacement and try to get one with the new GPU

 

Pulled it apart and the memory card in my camera decided to crap out so I took photos with my phone, they should be alright quality, I will post them tomorrow, when I figure out how to add images to my post properly.

 

Sorry to hear. I think once 8800 version is released the 1730 will be a very good machine. Rock's XTreme 7700 is also good, in fact that is the one I am buying, there prices are not the best but I do not want to go through importing from USA again.

For the time being it is best to return your 1730, even if Dell does offer a 8800 upgrade later it will be expensive.

 

So.... what is the best drivers to play Cod4 and Crysis for dual 8700s? Pls guys... I need help.... I am dying to get above low settings on Crysis! I hear that 8600s are getting more FPS than my dual 8700s are. And ur 8700s are doing way better than my ones. Is the secret in driver 169.09? If so... where do i get it?

 

Ok.. Lean back and wait... Dont get Alienware. I got an alienware once. The best one they had (laptop) and guess what? within 24 hours The screen failed... The motherboard failed... The little CMOS battery failed... The OS failed... And finnally the cherries ontop Graphics card and soundcard failed.

I had to be on support for 5 hrs ontotal before they agreed for me to send it back and refund me. Then I got this amazing m1730.

So if u have problems... lean back and enjoy a cool desktop and wait for a new era of gaming laptops (not alienware). If you want a gauranteed no problamo PC ... then I suggest building your own. With duall 8800 GTXs.. That will be awsome.

 

1.5Gb of Ultra wud be sweeter!

 

would also be hundreds if not close to a thousand dollars sweeter too, lol

 

I've attached some photos of the insides of the 1730

 

Was it easy to pull apart wogstaa?

 

Nice pic's!!!

Really cool to see the beast of an Sli set-up! Those are some big ass fans!

72oo

 

Probably as easy as it is going to get... in other words its very easy and amazingly easy compared to my HP laptop. I've been running my 1730 all day and have had no problems since I put it back together and I found the screw that the tech 'lost' he put it where there is supposed to be no screw

 

The upgrade areas for wifi, bluetooth, wwan etc are very very easy to access

the blutooth module doesnt even require screws! under the battery there is a pop out holder! Yes i do beleive the dual hard drive sled is the cause of the wobbliness, the creakiness bothers me more.

 

I just sent my M1730 back... actually I do have a good desktop PC build by my own, but I am travelling very often and thats why I really do need a laptop. not only for my work, but also for gaming. I really want to be able to play current games on high details.

but the GeForce 8700 really slowed the M1730 so much down, that 4333€ were not acceptable at all for such less gaming power.

I also thought about a Rock system, but actually I dont live in the UK and thats why I cant use the theft, repair and damage insurances. and with my last Dell M170 I made the experience that such an insurance can be very usefull and improtant!

for that reason I am not going to buy a Rock system.

I dont know if this is the right place for the following question, so please treat me nice even if its not!

what do u think about the Q17 Xtreme from Cyber-System?

http://www.cyber-system.de/product.php?productid=128&exp_showoptions=1

I think about buying one of these.

 

Just taken delivery of my 1730.

No leak from the screen, everything is perfect. No creaks from the lid, keyboard backlight is great. Enabled SLi, played GRAW on full res.

No complaints...

Loving it.

 

Installing XP back on my 1730 increased battery life to 1.5 hours and allows much higer framerates. anyone else done this? I know that I loose DX10.. but with all the rest of the benifits I think its worth it

Dave P

 

Hi Milo - mind posting your system's configuration? As a "waiting customer" for my 1730 to show up - I'm in that dreamy so happy state... You got XP or Vista?

 

Anyone buy DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) memory for their 1730s? I ordered my 1730 with 2GB and plan to up it to 4... didn't see the point in paying an extra 375 for 2 more GB when newegg has it listed for 120~200 for a full 4GB.

Anyone have recommendations for brand/site/etc? Heatsinks on the memory a problem in the laptop space?

Thanks in Advance!

 

The system looks OK, it all comes down to how reliable the reseller is and how good their service is. All these notebooks are manufactured by Clevo and are essentially identical regardless of which reseller you buy it from.

This seems to be a Sager 9261 notebook, they are a bit heavier than Dell, but do offer more configuration options. However, seeing that you already have a good desktop, it might be better to consider a more lightweight system with just one 8800 - it will be much easier to carry around.

 

Hardware wise, its the UK base model, the only options I plumped for was Full office and Vista Business. (I have a domain @ home)

I video'd the unboxing (sad, but when the max I've spent on a previous laptop was £50, £1600 is a really big deal for me)

No extra mouse, or sleeve, just a faux leather document wallet for the manuals, set of earbug headphones + pouch, media remote (battery spring needed tweaking), GRAW2, Office, Vista, Dell drivers, Media install, Roxio, two kettle leads, one PSU.

Be very excited, looks like all the problems have been ironed out...

Later this week I'm ordering the higher spec memory from Crucial, only £100 or so, for BIG memory.

 

Hi,

I was on the phone to a sales rep the other day and he offered me a Sony LCD instead of a Samsung! Which I hadn't heard before.

Anyone using a Sony LCD in your M1730? If so what's it like?
Indeed has any one even heard of a Sony LCD going into a M1730... I thought it was all Samsung, Sharp, LG.

Any info is appreciated.

72oo

 

I'm with Milo, I got mine last week and it is awsome, Absolutely beautiful screen, runs fast and sooo quiet, runs GRAW2 easy and good old Warcraft 3 TFT at about 10% CPU - which I know may not be GPU intensive, but is where I spend most of my time. I'm looking forward to Starcraft 2 on this baby next year. This things is pretty to look at as well, silver keyboard looks way better in person than the pictures, Only suprise was the power brick, man that thing is enormous. Gonna maybe go get Crysis or COD to see how she does and report back ....

 

I'm also looking forward to Starcraft 2 !

 

Damn u all who can run GRAW2 on full res. I cant I dont know why!! well... then again I only try in Ageia Island . Wht abt u guys? How is ur CPU usage, Ram usage and framerate during GRAW2 on Ageia Island on full specs?

 

Hey guys. Time for my tune up. Ive decided on my Memory upgrades but I dont know the compatible specs for the Hardrive. A size .... model no.? or pin numbers or something which identifies compatibility. For example for memory it is SODIMM 200 pins at DDR2 667mhz. Any codes like this for Hard Drive? Thanks guys.

 

Does anybody know what to do with the SATA srivers for AHCI for Vista 64bit. And do any of you guys run vista 64bit?

*******************************************************************

DELL M1730 SMOKE GREY
Intel® Core™ 2 Extreme X7900
17" UltraSharp™ TFT-WUXGA (1920 x 1200), TrueLife™
2.0 MP webcam
4096 MB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM på 667 MHz
400 GB SATA-harddiske (7.200 omdr./min.)
Dual 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® Go 8700M GT (upgrading to 8800M GTX SLI)
Ageia PhysX-processorkort
Blue-ray DVD drive

*******************************************************************

 

I'll check those usages out this week and let you know, doesn't really seem to be breaking a sweat though. As for Starcraft 2 Zergworld, I'm hoping earlier than later next year, but I guess that is wishful thinking as for all the talk about the 8800M, I guess I might not be fully testing this thing since I haven't really had any problems, but I have seen the inside of my firends M1730 and the GPU card pulled right out, and I'm guessing a new card could easily be popped in it's place .... Dual 8800s might be overkill for SC2 though

 

How do I indentify the maker of the LCD?

 

GRAW2 on full res, is playable, about 15-20fps, just feels slightly delayed.

 

you go into device manager and then pull up the display and I think under one more subgroup of menu it should have a Manufacturer code on it; and I think LP means "LG" and SEC "Samsung" and SHP is "Sharp", If I hadnt read this thread I never would have even checked it ...

 

http://www.forbes.com/2007/11/28/ga...idaytech07-cx_bc1128laptop.html?partner=email

Not a bad article for anyone just getting into gaming laptops...

 

Its only a small point but the next generation of disc drives are called Blu-Ray not Blue-Ray

Pedantic pat over and out

72oo

 

SEC5443

Is that good then? It looks ace to me. No leakage.

 

The SEC5443 (Samsung) had terrible leakage and curtaining for me. I had to send the XPS1730 back because of it. Australia only gets the Samsung panel. Europe and US also get LG and Sharp panels. LG is the best with Sharp a close second.

I'm going to wait for the 8800M now to see how that pans out before I go through the pain of ordering another notebook of any brand.